


Day in the Sun

by owlmoose



Series: Pieces of Thedas [29]
Category: Dragon Age II
Genre: F/M, First Kiss, Flash Fic, Prompt Fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-05-28
Updated: 2013-05-28
Packaged: 2017-12-13 06:31:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 823
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/821138
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/owlmoose/pseuds/owlmoose
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Passing through Kirkwall, on his way back to the Wardens after a trip with his sister, Carver pays a call on the one other person he misses from his year in the city: Merrill.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Day in the Sun

**Author's Note:**

> Written to the prompt "Carver/Merrill: Strikhedonia (the pleasures of saying 'to hell with it')". My first-ever attempt at this pairing. Set in Marissa Hawke's universe, post-Legacy (which happened in the years between Act 2 and Act 3 in her canon).

It had been a long trek to the Vinmark Mountains and back, a tiring few days in the Deep Roads, disturbing to see his possible fate in the form of Larius, but Carver felt good as he left the mansion and headed for the docks. It was a gorgeous day, the mission had been a success, he would be able to make a favorable report to the Grey Wardens, and he had acquitted himself well in front of his sister’s friends — even Marissa had spoken highly of him, and her praise did not come easily. Only one thing, really, had been missing from this visit back to Kirkwall, and as he reached the bottom of the stairwell into Lowtown, he paused, then checked the sky. Yes, he decided, he had time. And so the door to the Hanged Man, he turned left instead of right, heading toward the Alienage instead of the docks, walking briskly so as not to give himself the opportunity to change his mind.

The Alienage was darker than the rest of Lowtown, the high walls blotting out most the sun. Carver made his way across the square, straight to Merrill’s door, and he reached up his hand to rap on it with his knuckles, a quick tattoo only a little faster than the sudden beating of his heart. What if this was a terrible mistake? What if she didn’t want to see him? Maker, what if she’d forgotten? Almost he broke away and ran, but it was too late, the door was opening and she was there, looking up at him, head jerking backwards with stunned surprise.

“Carver!” she cried, the shock in her eyes melting away, and then she flung herself up at him in an enthusiastic hug. He closed his eyes and hugged her back. She felt just as good as he had always imagined she might, warm and light but deceptively strong, her arms gripping his back. When she relaxed, he let her go, but only reluctantly. She grinned up at him, and he felt himself smiling back. “What are you doing here? Are the Wardens on a mission here?”

Carver shook his head. “You know those Carta thugs came after my sister?” Merrill nodded, and Carver grimaced. “They attacked me, too. Tracked me down to the Warden base at Ansburg. So I came back to help her take care of it. But we finished that business, so…” He spread his hands. “I thought I’d, ah, come say hello. Before I have to go back.” Struck by a sudden shyness, he looked down at his feet. “Since, you know, I never got the chance to properly say goodbye, before the Deep Roads. I still feel bad about that.”

Merrill’s smile softened. “I got your letter,” she said. “The one you sent, four years ago, when you first joined the Wardens. I would have written back, but I didn’t know where to send it, or what to say, besides telling you about life in Kirkwall, and I’m sure that’s not nearly as interesting as anything you get up to as a Grey Warden, and I’m going on again, aren’t I?” A bit of pink rose to the tips of her ears. “Anyway, it was a lovely letter, and it’s not your fault you couldn’t say goodbye, so don’t be sorry. And it’s lovely to see you.” She glanced behind her, into the dark of her rooms. “I’d invite you in, but the place is a bit of a mess.”

“Maybe we could take a walk instead?” Carver gestured toward the sky. “It’s a nice day. And we could talk. You can tell me all the things you would have written in that letter.” 

“I’d like that,” Merrill said with a nod. She stepped out the door and to his side, then popped up on her tiptoes and kissed him on the cheek.

Startled, he turned to look down at her. She lowered her eyes, then glanced back up with a half smile. “Oh. I hope that wasn’t too forward. It wasn’t, was it?”

“N-no. Not at all.” Carver shook his head to emphasize the point. She met his gaze, her green eyes round and full, and her smile grew wider, wiping all thoughts of caution away as he leaned down to kiss her back. Her small fingers came up around his neck and pulled him closer, and he wrapped an arm around her waist, heedless of anyone who might see.

Only a moment passed, but it felt like hours. Finally, he let go and stepped back; she looked at him with sparkling eyes, resting a hand on his chest. “How much time do you have, then?”

“A few hours,” he said. “But hell. There’ll always be another ship if I miss this one.”

Merrill giggled, and she curled her hand around his elbow, soft and warm and fitting in the crook just right. “Now about that walk.”


End file.
